Process of dehydrating vegetables and the like



March 14, 1933. I w, H BQZARTH 1,900,974

PROCESS OF DEHYDBATING VEGETABLES `AND THE LIK Filed May l1, 1928 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 .March 14; 1933.

. W. H. BOZARTH PROCESS 0F DEHYDRATING VEGETABLES AND THE LIKE Filed May l1, 1928 4 Sheecs-Sheell 3 lMarh14,1933.' WH. BOZARTH 1,900,974

PROCESS OF DEHYDRATING VEGETABLES AND THE LIKE Filed May :11, 192s 4 sheets-sheet 4 IN VEN TOR.

ATTORNEY.

Painted Mar. 14, 1933 :UNITED ASTATES,

PATENT oFFlcE WILLIAM n. nomma, oF VINEILAND, NEW- JERSEY, AssIGNoB. 'roosBonN rnomrc'rs ING., n CORPORATION oF NEW JERSEY, EDWARD E. Gnossour, RECEIVER PROCESS 0F DEHYDRATIN'G VEGETBLES AND THE LIKE.

'Application ined 'May 11,

- My invention relates to apparatus for and Another object is to so construct the apparatus that dehydration can be accomf plished by thecreation of a vacuum to draw oif moisture, by the circulation of atmospheric air-at natural or increased temperature, or by `circulation with the circuit closed so that agitation and circulation of the` air-within the apparatus is accomplished without the introductionof atmospheric air.

A further object is to provide apparatus ofrsuch character that.v the heated air used in the main steps'of the dehydrating operation can be employed to dry Aand pre-treat a large quantity of material-to prevent spoiling when thevegetables or other material to be dehydrated is received in quantities larger than can be taken care of in the actual dehydrating mechanism.

Still another object is to provide a process of dehydrating vegetables, fruits, and the like which can be carried eliciently and economically to dehydrate various materials .and which contemplates the control of the moisture extraction to thus retain the natural color and the natural salts and other elements within the dried product.

With the above andotherwobjects in view which will be apparent to those skilled in the art, my present invention includes certain novel features of construction and combinations of parts, as well ascertain novel steps of procedure and methods which will 1928. Serial No. 277,090.

ysome of which will be pointed out in con.-

nection with the drawings.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a view in perspective showing an apparatus constructed in accordance with my invention and with which my improved process can be accomplished.

Fig. 2 isa view in side elevation.

c Fig. v3 is an end view.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary one of the air conduits and `its connection "with themain structure. n

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary detail view showing one of the dehydrated cars.

Fig. e is a View Similar to Fig. 1' showings a modified construction. Fig. 7 is a vertical sectionalperspective `view of the pre-drying compartment.

Fig. 8 is a view in elevation showing several of the drying tunnel `apparatuses coupled together to give' an air supply connec-A tion forthe pre-drying compartment.

As illustrated 'in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 I have VAshowna drying tunnel apparatus having a plurality of dehydrating which can be used in treatlng several quantities of the same material in carrying the Same through successive steps, or which an be employed in dehydrating several qua tities of material of different characters, as 30,'

for instance, fruit and vegetables in differlent compartments, or leeks or onlons 1n one compartment and less odoriferous vegetables in other compartments, it having been found that it is not possible to dehydrate some vegetables, fruits and they like in a closed l compartment with others, as the one will become tainted with the odor and flavor of the other.

As here shown the dehydrating tunnel 1 90 is made of elongated form and has the track rails 2 and 3 extending through the `i 50 be -apparent to those skilled in the art and temperature', and a metal or other lining 100 detail view oi 60 compartments I5 The tunnel 1 has the side and 95 is preferably provided throughout -the inter1or of the tunnel to protect a ainst 'the absorption of moisture, odors an the like. The tunnel 1 is open at both ends and these ends will be closed by doors movable in guides `6 and 7. Intermediate the ends, guides 8 and 9 are provided and doors 10 and 11 mounted in these guides can be closed down into the passage of the tunnel to divide the length thereof into three compartments. It will be appreciated that the division might be into a greater or lesser number of`compartments depending upon the length of the tunnel and the conditions of use.

As best shownv in Fig. 2 radiator` or heat- Ying pipes are provided along the Sides of each lof the compartments as shown at 12, 13 and 14,- these radiators or heating coils being connected with supply and return pipes 15 and 16 which are at their free ends connected ywith a boiler or other heating system. Valves 17 are provided to control the heat within the several radiators or co1 s.

An air supply pipe 18 extends alon one sideI of the tunnel 1 at a location to eave clear room for doors .10 and 11 and branch air supply pipes 19 and 20 lead Vfrom the main pipe 18 to connect with compartment A,nbranch air supply pipes 21 and 22 lead to connect with compartment B, and branch 'pipes 23 and 24 lead to connect with compartment C. As shown in Fig`.|4 the ends of these several branch air supply pipes preferably open into the compartments'to discharge the air therefrom through the radiator or,.heating coil structures 122 13 and 14, the air being thus heated as 1t passes into the several compartments. Air will be supplied through ipe 43 o the mainv air supply lead (15 anni) a valve 43a will control the opening f. this pipe 43, while valves 27, 2 8 and 29 are provided in the branch pipes. 20, 22 and 24, corresponding valves being provided in pipes 19, 21 and 23.

A main air discharge pipe 30' extends along the length of the tunnel 1. and has branches 31, 32 and' 33 leading from the top of the compartments A, B and C connected therewith. This pipe 30 is relatively larger than the air supply pipe 18 and is provided with an out et lead 34. Valve 35 is fitted in the outlet lead and the several granches are controlled by valves 36, 37 and 8. A fan 39 mounted at one end of the tunnel and operated by motor 40, or other suitable means,vhas the eye thereof connected by pipe 41 with discharge pipe 30 and the discharge of the ump 1s connected by pipe 42 with air supp y pipe 18. A suction intake pipe 25 is connected with air suppl 'ipe 18, adjacent ipe 42 .and is controlled) by valve 26, a va ve 18a being provided in pipe 18 to cut the same off so that pipe 25 can be I used as an exhaust pipe. A valve controlled suction intake pipe 44 is connected with discharge pi 30 preferably adjacent the connection o pipe 41.

Drying cars of which one is shown at 45 in Fig. 5, are mounted'on the track rails 2 and 3 and are provided with spaced rack portions or rack supports 46 in which the materialto be dehydrated will be placed. The racks `or trays to'teceive the material preferably have the bottoms thereof made of wire netting or other material which will permita free' and ready circulation of air, and when the cars are rolled into the various compartments A, B and C theyA will be so located that the air discharged as indicated by the arrows in Fig. 4 will be directl circulated around and through thev rac s orr desirable that some means be provided to chock the wheels of the cars tohold the same in lace within the com artments.

ferring to Fig. 5,A t e arms 50 on slide bar 51 fitted beneath the rails 2 and 3 are disposed to overlie the track rails to serve as chock blocks when the bar 51 isslid in one direction and this movement of the bar to bring the arms50 into the operative and inoperative positions is accomplished through hand levers 52 accessible from the outside of the tunnel. I

The several doors can be mounted on cables 53a working over rollers 54a and provided with counterbalance weights 53 and these doorsare thus suspended to be readily operated.

In dehydrating vegetables with my apparatus, the material is preferably cut or sliced, washed and thenv placed upon the trays or (racks of the cars 45. Thesecars are moved into the compartments A, B, or C as the case may be, and the doors are closed. The valves 36, 37 and 38 in the discharge branches 30 and valve 53 in pipe 30 are opened on the intake side of the fan and valve 26111 pipe 25 is opened on the discharge side, valves 1802, 35, 43a'=and 54 are closed. With this arrangement the fan 39Y i's operated to exhaust the several compartments and create a partial vacuum therein to extract surface mois-V ture contained by the material. After this operation has been contihued for a suiiicient time, depending upon the material being treated, the valves in branch are opened, valve 18a, 35, 43a are opened and valves 26 and 53 are closed. The fan 39 then takes in atmospheric air through pipe 44 and this is forced through the several ranch pipes 19 to 24, inclusive, to discharge through the radiator coils within the several compartments, this heated air being injected to circulate throu h and around thecontents ofthe racks carried by the cars. The air forced into the compartments will escape through the branch pipes into discharge pipe 30 and then will pass through discharge out-l let 34; however, due to the fact that the air is introduced under pressure Whereas the` discharge is not forced, a pressure will be .mainv tained Within the compartments. This operation might be continued until the mois. ture content of the material is extracted and dehydration has been accomplished, but it has been found that vegetables and materials such as cabbage, parsley and the like lose their natural color under continuous treatment with heated atmospheric air, that the thicker vegetable materials such as celery will be dried orseared at the ends of the fibers to close the same against pro er extraction of the moisture within the cells, and that all materials lose the natural odor when this circulation of heated atmospheric airis maintained for a great length of time. To

counteract this, I have found that intermittent treatment by the circulation of atmospheric air and treatment with the system closed to circulate the moisture-laden air Within the compartments will not only serve to retain the color, flavor and odor and to maintain the material in condition with the pores or cells openfor most efficient dehy dration, but that the closed circulation will .bring back or restore the material where the direct dehydration with the heated atmospheric air has been too long rolonged. This closed circulation is accomp ished by closing valve 35 and opening valve 53 and at the same time closing valve 54 against the intake of atmospheric air to thus lmaintain a closed systenwitli the fan exhausting `air through pipe 30 and discharging the same air through supply pipe 18 and its branches. With this step carried on intermittently a proper humidity is maintained within the compartments and the material can be treated most efliciently. i

During this treatment by introduction of heated atmospheric air and discharge of the air to take moisture from the mater1al being treated, it is necessary that the process of the dehydration of the material be Watched,

` especially where the material is in large pieces or is of a pulpy character, and when the surface becomes dry to such an extent that surface hardening commences, this introduction and "Withdrawal -of atmospheric air must. be stopped andthe system closed forrecirculation of the air Within the compartment, so that moisture taken from the material will be circulated in the air over and in contact with those parts where surface hardening mi ht take place, to thus l soften the surface bres and texture'in all parts so that the surface pores and interstices will be o ened to allow escape and withdrawal of) moisture from the body of the pieces of material, as the rocess is continued. At no time is the lntroduction of moisture from any extraneous source resorted to, or necessary,in carryin out my process, and as the steps are carrie forward the material will be uniformly dried, Without hardening or over drying or crystallizing of any portion. The dehydrated material will have a substantially uniform mois ture content in all parts, and the odor, flavor and color are preserved by the avoidance of surface hardening and of introduction of extraneous moisture.

As illustrated in Fig. 6, the tunnel 55 has a single compartment and the air supply and discharge ipes 56 and 57 are `connected with this in su stantially the manner set forth iabove. With this construction the pipes can be led and connectedmore directly as it is not necessary to clear .the way for doors as with the structure embodying. a plurality of compartments within the tunnel. This single compartment tunnel might be made of any desired length to. accommodate any number of cars and the branch pipes from the air supply and discharge pipes can be connected with the compartments at points to accomplish a most eliicient circulatio under the given conditions. Y

As shown in Figs. 7 and 8 I have illustrated an arrangement for pre-drying material using the heated air from `a plurality of drier tunnels and apparatus generally indicated at 58, 59 and 60. The several air discharge pipes 61, 62 and 63 from' these drier tunnels have valved leads 64, 65 and 66 extending therefrom and connected with a main pipe 67 which connects with the suction side of a fan 68, a discharge pipe 69 being connected with the compression side of the pump. A compartment or pre-drying' room 70, which can be of any suitable construction, shape and dimensions, has the floor thereof made up of` alternating supportin portions 71 and grating sections72, a pit $3 being provided vbelow this floor. The pipe 69 is extended to have its outer end opened substantially centrally within the pit 73, and cars having the material tol be'- dehydrated thereon can be rolled into the compartment upon the ioor. and/,the heated air throu h pipe 69 will be circulated around and through the material to pre-dry the same and drive off moisture toprevent rotting, molding, or other s'poilage. One or more ventilators 74 are provided at the top of the compartment 70'afnd a valve con- ,tirol is provided at 75. This apparatus is found particularly advantageous where the material to be treated is received in carvegetables, fruits or other material, al-l though it has been foundnot necessary to reduce some materials from their natural size and form; then this material is preferably washed and is placed upon the racks or trays. If conditions Warrant Athe material in the trays will then be placed in the pre-drying compartment and the temperature and air circulation there will be maintained to drive oil excess moisture and keep 'the material 'in condition to prevent spoiling; or, the material can be 'introduced directly into the dehydrating tunnels. The

`process of dehydration is then carried out creating a vacuum, by introducing and circulating outside air to take moisture from the material and b intermittently closing the source of outside air and circulating the moisture-laden air back through the material to preserve a proper degree of surface humidity and prevent the loss of color, avor and odor.

With my improved apparatus and process I Vhave found it possible to dehydrate parsley, celery, onions, cabbage and many other vegetables from their natural state to a dried state mostadvantageous for powdering the same for use in seasonings, vegetable salts, cream soups, sauces, etc., in a period of time much less than is ref quired where a direct circulation of outside air or a direct closed circulation have been used; and, at the same time I am able to preserve `the natural color, odor and taste as 1t 1s possible to carryout the process to remove the moisture and accomplish dehydration Without cooking the material or extracting or otherwise affecting the natural salts and ingredients.v v v While I have herein shown and described only certain specific forms of apparatus and have suggested onlycertain possible steps of procedure in carrying out my improved v process, it will be appreciated that changes and variations can be made. without departing from the' spirit and' scope of my invention.

I claim:

1. `'I'he process of dehydrating fruit-and vegetablel materials comprising, placing the material in a closed compartment, introducing outside air into said compartment and discharging said air from the compartment to withdraw moisture for a period of time,

closing the source of outside air and the dischar thereof and recirculating the air within the compartment to take up moisture :from the material and by passing the .moisture' laden air over the material bring alll portions of the surface to uniform moistcned condition, and alternately effecting the circulation of outside air and the recirculation of moisture laden air through thev compartment until the material has been dehydrated to the desired degree, the entire process being effected Without the introduction into the compartment of moisture from an extraneous source. n

2. rlhe process of dehydrating fruit and vegetable materials comprising, placing the material into a closedcompartment, introducing into the compartment low down therein a continuous supply of heated outside air to circulate around the material and absorb moisture therefrom, discharging the moisture laden outside air from the comy partment for a period of time, closing the source of outside air and the discharge thereof and recirculating the air within the compartment to absorb 'moisture from the material and by contacting with the surface thereof to establish a substantially uniform moisture content on all parts of the surface, l

and alternately eecting the circulation of outside air and the recirculation of moisture lladen air without supplementing the moisture content from an extraneous source through the compartment until the material has been dehydrated to the desired degree.

3.v The process of dehydrating fruit and vegetable materials comprising, placing the material into a 'closed compartment, creating a partial vacuum therewithin to withdraw surface moisture from said material, then continuously introducing into 'and continuously discharging outside air from said compartment for a period of time, closing .the source of outside air and the discharge thereof and recirculating the moisture-laden material into al closed compartment, creating a partial vacuum therein to withdraw surface moisture from said material, continuously introducing outside dry heated air into said compartment to circulate through 4the particles of material and take up moisture therefrom, discharging the moisture'- laden air from said compartment for a period of time suiciently short to prevent surface hardening, closing the source of outside air and the discharge thereof and recirculatingair within the compartment to take up moisture from the material and restore uniform moisture content to all parts of the surface of the particles, and alternatelyeiecting the circulation of outside air and the recirculation of moisture-laden air through the compartment until the material has been dehydrated to the desired degree, the entire process being effected without the introduction into the compartment of moisture from an extraneous source and the discharge of outside air being stopped in each irterval before surface hardening takes p ace. l

5. `The process of dehydrating fruit and vegetable materials comprising, placing the l5 material into a closed compartment, introducing low down into the compartment outside air to flow through the material, heating the air as introduced, discharging the air from said compartment to carry moisture from the material therewith, ceasing the step of introducin and discharging of outside air prior to t e commencement. of surface hardening of the material, closing the sourde of outside air and the dischargel thereof and recirculating the air within the compartment to take up moisture from the v material and by flowing through the material to restore all portions of the surface of the material to a uniform moisture content, and alternately effecting the circulation of outside air and the recirculation of moisture-laden air through the compartmentuntil the material has been dehydrated to the desired degree, the entire process being effected Without the introduction into the compartmentof any moisture from an' ex 'traneous source. p

In testimony whereof I hereunto ailix my signature.v 40 l WILLIAM H. BOZARTH. v 

